Francine Rivers is a prolific and powerful writer. I have read several of her books, but none touched me like the story held between the covers of Redeeming Love.

Not only is Redeeming Love based on one of the most powerful stories in the Bible, the marriage of Hosea to Gomer, a prostitute, but Rivers has developed characters rich in courage, strength and humanity. The dialogue and scenes are lush with the history of the California gold rush and the families who followed their men into this strange and often unforgiving desire to strike it rich.

Central to the story is a five-year old girl, Sarah, later called Angel, sold into child prostitution and used body and soul for the needs of ugly and brutal men. It isn't surprising that she grows hard and bitter. And it isn't surprising that she doesn't understand the meaning of the word "love."

Enter Michael Hosea. A man of God. A man who realizes that God has called him to marry Angel, but the battle is in convincing Angel. The stumbling blocks she presents to God's plan in Michael's life are treacherous and often mean-spirited, but his patience never seems to wear thin.

Others work against Michael's attempt to finish the work God has placed in his hands, and still others can see the peaks and valleys Michael and Angel walk through are making a difference for both.

I'll stop here because I want you to enjoy Redeeming Love as much as I did. A lengthy book at 461 pages, the story will grasp your heart and you will read until you know the outcome.

Congratulations to Francine Rivers on writing a spectacular book!

Recommendation:

Redeeming Love is for fans of Christian fiction and romance. Although rich in its story line based as it is on Hosea's story, there are scenes which might be unsuitable for young teenage girls. I would suggest a parent reading it first.

Note: I received a free copy from WaterbrookMultnomah in exchange for an honest review.

Slightly based on the story of Gomer and Hosea, Redeeming Love helped me understand God work at hand and how even when we don't see him in our path, he is always there guiding us. I have always been a fan of Francine Rivers, but I absolutely loved this novel. It was heartbreaking, joyful and encouraging all in one. We are first introduced to a young girl named Sarah, who is desperate to have her father acknowledge and love her. Later we see her grow and her mother selling herself in order to feed and care for young Sarah. After her mother passes, a young Sarah is sold to a man who uses her for years. Destroying her innocence and childhood. Just like Gomer in the bible, Sarah results to selling herself and using her body to manipulate and use men. She is the most beautiful woman in the area_men literally wait all day for 30 min with her. She should feel powerful, beautiful, wanted_but no matter what she is feeling more and more alone and broken each day. Going by the name Angel, she becomes completely harden to men, love and God. No one in her life has ever shown her the true meaning of God's love. Even as a young girl, a priest kicked her and her mother out of a church when they were desperate for help. One day when she was out for a walk, a man named Michael Hosea sees her. He is a good, Godly man. Pure and clean, waiting and praying for his wife to come. The moment he sees Angel, he knows God is telling him to marry her. Of course she thinks he's just falling for her body and refuses to become attached to him. She tries constantly to seduce him, but with a lot of prayer, he turns her down. Knowing he is there to show her God's love, not use her like all the men before.

So just like in the story Hosea in the bible, Michael marries Angel. She fights, refuses to love him, and yes, even runs to another man. No matter what he tells her, she only sees herself as an object and never capable of love. But just when Michael feels like he completely lost her, Christ opens her heart and she allows him to change her.

This was an amazing story and perfect for anyone who wants to get lost in a book. You will be touched by Michael's forgiving love, and heartbroken for the pain Sarah carries with her daily.

Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers takes place in California's gold country in the 1850s. It is about a woman, Angel, who was sold into prostitution as a child and spent her entire life full despondency because of her hatred for the men who used her. Michael Hosea, a godly farmer, felt God directed him to marry Angel, much to the disapproval of everyone around him, including Angel.

This story is definitely a love story, the hard working love of a man for a woman, and the love of Michael's God that eventually wins over the heart of Angel through the kindness and love of those around her. As Angel eases into a new life of being a farmer's wife, she questions her ability to love and be loved. Though many times her doubts take her over, Michael maintains his trust in his God - that He will bring them together as a man and wife who love and trust one another. This story compels the reader to evaluate their own attitudes and actions toward those caught in a life of pain and sin that bears the responsibility. It is certainly a good example to a believer of how God can change a heart and cause a life to become brand new through the love and acceptance by His faithful few. This book reminds me of the saying, "But for the grace of God, there go I."

This story mirrors the Hosea/Gomer story in the Bible where God directs a man to marry a prostitute in order for Him to show His redeeming love for His beloved people. Rivers does a great job of drawing the reader into the story and showing how insecurities and doubts that can prevent a person from giving and receiving love. I read this story years ago and it remains one of my favorites today. I highly recommend this book, especially to romantics who love a good ending.

WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group provided this book to me for free in exchange for this honest review as part of their Blogging for Books program.

Redeeming Love, written by Francine Rivers, is a retelling of the story of Hosea and Gomer in the Bible. Set in the mid-1800s during the California Gold Rush, it brings forth the lives of Angel and Michael.

Angel, sold into prostitution as a child, has never been able to escape from her plight. She finds herself in Pair-a-Dice, California, working as a prostitute, where her beauty draws men in flocks. Her hardened heart and hatred toward these men get her through each day, until Michael Hosea comes to town. Immediately drawn to Angel, he feels God is telling him to marry her. Although the marriage does not come about the way he plans, he is determined to honor his vows, even when Angel runs away from him over and over. She begins trying to escape what she feels is being owned by another man, and ends up running the final time in an effort to protect Michael from a life she sees as not good enough for him.

This is a truly beautiful love story. I would, however, recommend caution in regard to preteens or younger readers due to the subject matter. While nothing lewd or inappropriate is included, portions are clearly intended for more mature readers.

Kara

I received this book free from the publisher and was not required to write a positive review.